TikTok has opened its first data center in Europe in a bid to assuage privacy concerns and alleged links to the Chinese government. The social network reported that it is migrating the data of European users to servers in Dublin, Ireland. He also announced the contracting of the British cybersecurity firm NCC, another guarantee contemplated within what he has called the “Clover Project”.
The social network, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, has always said that it has never provided data to China. However, TikTok has faced restrictions from different governments around the world, which have raised concerns about the privacy of their users’ data. Among them, the US, the European Union and Canada, who vetoed the use of the platform to all their officials.
The data center in Dublin is already up and running. there are plans for another in Ireland and a third located in Hamar, Norway. The move would offer backup to the data of more than 150 million European users.
TikTok has called it “Project Clover” to refer to the fundamental role that Ireland is playing. The “Texas Project”, an equivalent initiative to calm the waters in the US, is also underway. The executive director of the social network, Shou Chew, said last May that Oracle, a US software company, would be the default destination for US user data
External audit, another guarantee from TikTok about your privacy
TikTok expects a full migration of user data from the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom by the end of 2024. Meanwhile, TikTok and Britain’s NCC said they will work with policymakers in Europe to explain how the system will work.
UK-based NCC has explained that it will independently audit TikTok’s data controls. It will also monitor data flows and report any incidents, as reported by The Guardian.
“We will also conduct security assessments of the TikTok platform from iOS and Android mobile devices, looking for security vulnerabilities or misconfigurations,” said Stephen Bailey, NCC Group’s global director of privacy. The cybersecurity company is empowered to deal directly with the authorities without TikTok being involved.